Back in 1980, British rock icon John Lennon was shot dead in New York City at just 40 years old.

Saturday (December 8) marked 38 years since Lennon was killed and a bizarre theory has now re-emerged claiming the Imagine singer buried his Beatles bandmate Paul McCartney back in 1966.

One of the vital "clues" to this wacky theory lies in iconic track Strawberry Fields.

During the song – which was written in 1967 – Lennon can be heard saying something which he claimed to be “cranberry sauce”.

The band’s press officer argued Lennon said “I’m very bored”.

But amid the speculation, theorists believe the singer actually said "I buried Paul" – therefore "confirming" the McCartney death conspiracy.

Although McCartney (to our knowledge) is alive and well at the age of 76, some believe he died in a car crash in 1966 and subsequently replaced by an imposter by the band’s record label – Apple Records.

From here, some claim the remainder of the four-piece band left a series of clues about Paul’s secret demise, many of which are hidden in plain sight on their iconic album covers.

IMPOSTER: Theorists believe Paul died 14 years before John (Pic: GETTY) (Image: GETTY)

But unsurprisingly, Paul quashed claims he was an imposter back in 1969.

Speaking to the BBC from his farm in Scotland, Paul said: "Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated.

"However, if I was dead, I'm sure I'd be the last to know."

John Lennon’s death has also been the subject of numerous conspiracies over the years, with some arguing the star was shot by a CIA agent in an attempt to diffuse the hippie revolution.